Boltz coach Aaron Fentress last year thought he had his offensive line set with the Portland Monarchs until promising left tackle prospect Dryden Long, out of Idaho, became unavailable just prior to the start of the season.

“Sometimes life gets in the way,” Fentress said. “Dryden’s work schedule made him unavailable and sent us scrambling a bit to fill a huge void.”

It just so happened that James, who attended the same high school as Long and was two years removed from having his career at Linfield College cut short by injuries, had time on his hands, the desire to play but no team to play for.